Preview: Mayhem at Peoria Rivermen (Game 40)
Published on February 16, 2019 under SPHL (SPHL)
Macon Mayhem News Release
Last night was the first and only time the Mayhem would play the Quad City Storm all season. Unless they meet in the playoffs, they will not square off against one another again. While the return of Jake Trask and Justin Levac clearly helped the Mayhem's attacking game, it still was not enough to fully ignite the offense.
Trask and Levac both assisted on Sean Reynolds' go-ahead goal late in the first period to give Macon a one-goal lead. The Mayhem had been 12-2-0 when leading after one period of play, but they could not pull through last night. For the remaining 40 minutes, Macon's attack was held silent by strong goaltending and missed power play opportunities, both of which have been haunting the Mayhem of late.
Now amidst a winless streak of a franchise-long seven games, the Mayhem have an impeccable opportunity tonight to reverse their recent struggles against an opponent largely responsible for them. Winning tonight's game would give the Mayhem an enormous confidence boost and would largely absolve much of the pain culminated over this skid.
The Matchup
While the Peoria Rivermen may have picked up tons of steam by sweeping the Mayhem on the road two weeks ago, their momentum has slowed down considerably since doing so. Last night, the Rivermen kicked off an eight-game home stand and fell 2-1 in a shootout against Birmingham. They also dropped a 4-3 decision in regulation last Saturday in Quad City. Last night marked the first time Peoria has lost twice in a row since being swept by Fayetteville on December 1st.
When the Rivermen visited the Centreplex for a three-game series, they took advantage of Macon's shortage of players and utilized the depth of their team to exhaust the Mayhem over the course of a 60-minute game. Now that Justin Levac and former Rivermen Jake Trask and Dakota Klecha are back in the lineup, the Mayhem will bring a deeper squad to the forefront than they were able to last time. Given the significance and implications of winning this game, expect the Mayhem to enter this tilt with guns blazing in an effort to hand Peoria its first regulation defeat on home ice all season.
Vegas Baby!
Las Vegas native Derek Sutliffe is emerging as an elite goal-scorer for the Mayhem. He has steadily produced at an incredibly consistent rate recently. He got off to a rather slow start to the campaign, but since the New Year began, the 26-year-old left-winger has averaged a goal every other game. His snipe over Peter Di Salvo's shoulder from the right circle last night tied him with Trask for the team-lead in goals with 16, which is a tremendous accomplishment. Sutliffe's scoring prowess is especially in high demand now, as the Mayhem have gone six straight outings without tallying more than twice.
College Nights
Only two home games remain for the rest of February. Both of them fall on Thursday nights and are College Nights, presented by Ann Parman Law Firm. General tickets for both of these games are only $10, and $8 with a college ID. College groups interested in attending can also purchase our group outing package for just $10/ticket, which includes free Mayhem baseball caps and an experience upgrade.
SPHL Stories from February 16, 2019
- Havoc Fall Short against Roanoke 4-3 - Huntsville Havoc
- Rivermen Clinch Postseason Berth, Manhandle Mayhem Saturday - Peoria Rivermen
- Morrissey Scores Twice in OT Loss to Knoxville - Evansville Thunderbolts
- Siemer Scores Lone Goal in Road Defeat to Peoria - Macon Mayhem
- Nieminen, Dawgs Drop Huntsville, 4-3 - Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs
- Marksmen Score Three-Unanswered in Comeback, Fall in OT - Fayetteville Marksmen
- Preview: Mayhem at Peoria Rivermen (Game 40) - Macon Mayhem
- Rail Yard Dawgs Game Notes: Rail Yard Dawgs (19-16-3) vs Havoc (23-13-2) - 7:05 PM - Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs
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